Visit by NATO Secretary General

This news article was published under
the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Statement on the Prime Minister's meeting with the NATO Secretary General today.

A Downing Street Spokesperson said:

The Prime Minister hosted the NATO Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, in Downing Street this morning where they discussed a range of topics in the run up to the NATO Summit in Chicago later this month.

The Prime Minister said he was enthusiastic about progress at the upcoming Summit and made the point that recent NATO operations in Libya were a good example of what NATO members could achieve together.

They discussed the ongoing operation in Afghanistan and the Secretary General paid tribute to British troops in the Helmand Province where he said there had been significant improvement on the ground.

Looking ahead to Chicago, the Prime Minister and Secretary General also discussed the process of transition and support for the Afghan Government post-2014. The Prime Minister reiterated the UK’s commitment to providing training support for Afghan Security Forces through the Afghan National Army Officer Academy.

They also discussed NATO capability in challenging economic times and where bilateral and multilateral cooperation could play a role.